Fears and Hopes
by Carlie Hikaze
Summary: HBP! What would happen if the things in the astronomy tower had gone a little different? Harry is seriously wounded… and Dumbledore will have to face the possibility that his error claims Harry’s life. CHAP V UP!
1. Regrets

**Disclaimer:** Yes they are not mine!

**A/N:** This is my first HP fanfic (another version of the one in spanish)… and it's the first time I try to write in english… so please, be gentle with me ^^!

**Summary:** HBP! What would happen, if the things in the astronomy tower had gone a little different? Harry is seriously wounded… and Dumbledore will have to make some changes on his plans.

**Fears and Hopes**

_"__I am not worried, Harry… I am with you…"_

_- Albus Dumbledore_

_The Half Blood Prince_

**Chapter I - Regrets**

"Severus…"

The sound frightened Harry beyond anything he had experienced all evening. For the first time, Dumbledore was pleading.

Snape remained in silence as he walked forward and pushed Malfoy out of the way. The three Death Eaters fell back without a word. Even the werewolf seemed cowed.

Snape stared for a moment at the headmaster, and there was some kind of hatred in the harsh lines of his face.

'_This is not happening! This is not happening!_'

The words repeated in Harry's mind, while he tried to remember the spell that Tonks had used on the train earlier in the year to free him from the Freezing Charm.

"Severus… please…"

Harry gazed in terror as Snape raised his wand and pointed it directly at Dumbledore; the child struggled furiously against the enchantment binding him.

"_Avada–"_

Harry's heart thundered, he closed his eyes desperately, trying to gather all the strength that was left in him… and then it happened, suddenly all his magic surrounded him, making Dumbledore's spell fade… in matter of seconds Harry was able to throw himself in front of the headmaster, his wand in his hand.

"Harry…"

_" –__kedavra!"_

_"__Avada kedavra!"_

Snape's voice was dimmed by the shout of Harry; both attacks shattered in the air, causing an explosion that lightened the entire place.

The last thing that Harry could see was the brilliance of an intense green light with a blue wake...

»«

With shocked eyes Malfoy and the four death eaters saw two beams of green light reappear from the explosion, one of them make Snape's wand flew out of his hand, while the other hit Harry, sending him against the headmaster, Dumbledore managed to hold him, before both were blasted into the air… and out of sight of the death eaters.

"What the hell was that?" yelled one of the Death Eaters.

Snape didn't answer. Instead, he stared at his wounded hand. He just couldn't understand exactly what had happened.

"There was something there!" the voice of Fenrir Greyback returned the potion master to the reality.

"Potter…" muttered Malfoy, "Potter with his damned invisibly cloak!"

"Potter?" Amycus turned towards Draco. "Here?"

"Didn't you hear Dumbledore calling his name?"

"I thought he was delirious."

Indifferent to Amycus's words, Malfoy dropped to his knees "Now…'He's' going to kill me."

After a few seconds, Snape observed the blonde boy "Do you really think that?"

"We were supposed to kill Dumbledore! And Potter ruined everything!"

"And… do you think his life is less valuable?" With a flick of his arm, Snape called his wand, "We have to go, before the Ministry turns up."

"But Sir–"

"Now!" Without another word the potions master seized Malfoy by the scruff of the neck and forced him through the door.

»»»«««

Dumbledore half-opened his eyes when he felt they had landed– with surprising lightness– on the ground of his office. During their fall from the astronomy tower, he had managed to lift one of the enchantments around the school, therefore being able to apparate both Harry and himself inside the castle.

The headmaster took a deep breath, trying to stop the sudden vertigo that threatened to leave him unconscious. The weight lying against one of his shoulders reminded him of Harry. Dumbledore extended one of his hands to hold the invisible cloak that covered the unconscious body of his student.

"Harry?" Dumbledore shook him gently trying to wake him, but it was useless. He closed his eyes again, while guilt started raging through his mind. Everything had happened so fast, and things had gotten out of his hands.

"Albus…"

Suddenly, the voice of Minerva McGonagall returned him to reality.

"Albus…please" Whispered Minerva holding the headmaster's hand, she smiled slightly when he started to move. "Are you all right?"

"I've been better," Dumbledore's voice was merely a whisper.

Minerva was about to answer when Dumbledore spoke again, "I need… to take Harry to the Hospital Wing…"

Noticing the boy, McGonagall paled at once, "What happened to him?"

"The killing curse…" muttered the headmaster, as he tried to get onto his feet and lift Harry into his arms.

"But–," she cut herself off when she saw that Dumbledore almost lost his balance, "You're hurt, both of you need to go to the hospital wing!"

"I'll be ok."

Looking sternly at the old man, she spoke, "Albus, I'm serious."

Seeing the determined glint in the woman's eyes, Dumbledore knew there was no way he could argue with Minerva about this… besides, he was to exhausted to even try.

»»»«««

After leaving Dumbledore and Harry with Madam Pomfrey, Minerva did her best trying to settle things. The school was completely in chaos, and although the Death Eaters seemed to be gone, she had to make sure that it was true. It was a few hours later before everything was in order, and she had the chance at last to think about going back to the hospital wing.

Pushing open the doors, Minerva saw Dumbledore standing in front of one of the large windows of the infirmary, next to the bed where Harry laid. The place was almost in complete darkness with the exception of a pair of candles that were standing on one of the small side tables.

"Albus… you should be resting." Minerva sighed, knowing that the Headmaster wasn't listening to her. Without thinking about it twice she walked towards Dumbledore.

It was a few seconds later when he spoke finally, "Is someone else injured?" he looked at the bed where Bill Weasley laid, his face was badly slashed.

"Mr. Longbottom and Professor Flitwick… But Madam Pomfrey said they would be all right, so I sent them to the Great Hall with the Weasleys, Mrs. Granger and the others. I couldn't let them to come here and see Harry... they would panic!" Minerva replied. Albus looked at her with stern face, and she turned her attention to Harry. She walked towards him and caressed his neck, almost wanting to confirm that his heart was still beating.

"He's not dead, Minerva."

McGonagall took a deep breath. "But… what if he doesn't make it?"

"He will," the Headmaster replied instantly.

McGonagall stared at him while she chose her words, "You know there is no way to intercept or …evade that curse."

Dumbledore spoke without looking away from the boy, "It wouldn't be the first time."

**To be continued. **

»»»«««

**Writted: **January 8, 2006

**Edited: **December 6, 2010

_Thanks to my wonderful beta-reader:_** Emeralds and Rubies**

»»»«««


	2. The Headmaster

Disclaimer: Yes, they are not mine!

**Fears and Hopes**

**Chapter II - The Headmaster**

It was nearly morning when Dumbledore was awakened by the sudden sensation of someone getting closer to Harry. He opened his eyes to find Madam Pomfrey leaning slightly over the child.

"Is something wrong?"

Poppy turned her attention towards the headmaster; "Actually… you should be in bed, not sitting there."

"Not me… Harry."

She sighed with resignation, looking from Dumbledore to Harry "I'm trying to warm him up."

The headmaster got to his feet and hurried to Harry's side, gently putting a hand on the boy's cheek.

"He's so cold," Madam Pomfrey said, wrapping a pair of additional blankets around Harry. "I'm afraid he's getting weak–." she interrupted herself as she realized that the headmaster was already having a difficult time seeing his student like this.

A few minutes later, Albus got out of his own thoughts and stared at Poppy again "And Professor McGonagall?"

Madam Pomfrey hesitantly opened her mouth to speak and then closed it again.

"Poppy?"

"But– Minerva told me not to tell you anything!"

"Poppy?" repeated Dumbledore quietly.

Taking a very deep breath she spoke. "She is in the Great Hall with the students and some of their parents," She sighed slightly while she walked towards Bill Weasley's bed. "It's seems as if all the Wizarding community believes you're dead. Many parents are insisting on taking their children home."

"Quite understandable," muttered Albus as he closed his eyes and buried his face in his hands.

Although he hadn't had time to think about it, he had supposed something like this would happen. On one hand, his duties as headmaster were urging him toward the Great Hall, but on the other hand, he didn't want to leave Harry's side. He wanted to be there for him to the very end…whatever that may be.

"Albus, don't worry," Said Madam Pomfrey kindly. She returned to his side and held one of the old wizard's shoulders. "He will still be breathing when you come back. I promise."

Dumbledore hesitated again, staring at the unconscious form of his student for another moment before standing up.

»»»«««

"WE SAW THE DARK MARK!"

Minerva tightened her fists with frustration as she felt her body tremble with fury – she was sure she was about to lose her temper. Assuring that everything was under control, she had tried to explain to the students´ parents all that had happened, but suddenly all of the Hall had exploded into a heated discussion.

"_Don't tell us that Aurors were protecting the school! Where were they when Death Eaters attacked the castle?"_

_"__Where were they when Dumbledore was killed?"_

"Professor Dumbledore is not–, " To her annoyance, Minerva was silenced again by one of the hysterical mothers.

"How could he get killed? He wasn't even here!" one blonde woman looked accusingly at McGonagall and the rest of the professors standing beside her. "He left the school! That's why the Death Eaters could enter the school in the first place!"

"Professor Dumbledore has never left the school unprotect-," Once again, Minerva was cut off.

"Protected or not," one of the Slytherins´ fathers raised his voice so that it drowned McGonagall's . "It doesn't matter anymore! Dumbledore is dead!"

"Really? To my knowledge, I am not."

Minerva sighed in relief as she recognized the voice. The entire Hall quieted and turned their attention towards the doors as the headmaster's tall form entered the Great Hall.

"Dumbledore…"

"He's here!" whispered Ron turning towards Hermione.

"Indeed he is…"

Ginny looked worryingly at them "But… if he is here– where is Harry?"

The place remained in silence while the headmaster walked towards the staff table. Once there, Dumbledore cleared his throat.

"Now that you can see that I'm very much alive, I'll explain you some things," he took a deep breath. "Although, I won't repeat what you already know…"

"YOU SAID THIS CASTLE WAS SAFE!"

Minerva couldn't help when she let out a yell of anger "Really!"

Albus seized McGonagall's wrist, trying to calm her down "The castle's magical fortifications did not fail," His calm voice silencing the loud parents. "They worked so well that the only way the Death Eaters could have entered was due to the aid of a student– a student that obviously did not measure the consequences of his actions."

Some of the parents stared at the headmaster in disbelief. "Are you telling us that one single student helped the death eaters to enter the school?" a Hufflepuff parent questioned in disbelief.

"Yes, as a fact."

The Great Hall remained in absolute silence. They knew very well that when that man talked about these matters, his words had to be taken seriously.

"However, I still do not think we're in more danger at Hogwarts than we are anywhere else," Dumbledore's blue eyes gazed at the parents that were in the Hall. "All lessons will be suspended immediately so you may take your children with you," continued the old man as he looked from the parents to his pupils "For those students remaining in the school, we will arrange for the Hogwarts Express to come tomorrow morning."

»«

Albus left the Great Hall as his life went on. He had barely answered questions. All he wanted to do was return to the Hospital Wing as soon as possible.

"Professor Dumbledore!" Hermione called as she, Ron and Ginny made their way towards him.

The headmaster stopped and turned back to them, "Miss Granger?"

Hermione was the first one to speak, "Is he all right?"

Albus remained in silence for a few seconds, while he tried to choose the best way to explain them "I certainly hope that he…"

"You certainly hope?" repeated Ron incredulously.

"Where is Harry?" the voice of Ginny echoed all over the hallway.

"I think… you shouldn't raise your voice in that way, young lady."

The four of them turned their gazes to find the Minister standing in the entrance hall.

"Rufus," muttered Dumbledore as the Minister of Magic walked towards him.

Scrimgeour smiled as best as he could. "Albus," he glanced at the injured arm of the old wizard "So it's true, you're alive…"

"No you idiot, he's a ghost."

"Ron!" Hermione covered his mouth with her own hands "I'm sorry, he's just–."

"Don't be…" Scrimgeour ignored the redheaded boy. "I understand– he must be quite disturbed after what happened tonight."

"I'm not dis–!"

"It really is time for you to go to bed," said the headmaster at last.

"Oh please Albus, besides, I interrupted your conversation." Seeing the apprehensive look in the headmaster's face, he continued, "I think you were about to tell them about Mr. Potter."

Exchanging glances with Ginny, Hermione decided to speak again. "Never mind," she said quietly, and without another word, she and Ginny hurried Ron out of sight.

"It seems that now I'm the only one interested in seeing Mr. Potter," he said after seconds.

Dumbledore smiled slightly "As I've already told you, that would not be possible"

"Well, I thought you would've changed your mind now that the circumstances are quite different. Hogwarts is no longer the safe place it used to be, much less for the Chosen One," The minister glared at him for another moment "I can offer him all sorts of protection…"

"So you can come up with the 'show'?" said Albus as he stared hard at Rufus.

"Has anybody ever told you how overprotective you can be?" Scrimgeour restrained his irritation with difficulty.

Dumbledore just turned away. "I have nothing more to say to you."

"Albus! Sooner or later I'll talk with him again, and you know it!" called Scrimgeour furiously as the headmaster climbed the steps up to the infirmary "You won't always be there to protect Harry Potter!"

»»»«««

Dumbledore leaned against the chair next to Harry's bed. He looked closely at the child making sure the boy was still breathing. He held one of the child's hands as he tried to assure him that he was with him.

Seconds later, or so it seemed to Dumbledore, the door opened and Minerva stormed through the doors of the Hospital Wing, finally having lost her control.

"The Minister is storming everyone! He wants a detailed explanation about what happened!" She said, pacing up and down the infirmary. "He wants to examine and discuss the running of the school– just like Fudge did!"

"Let him be," answered the old wizard tiredly.

"Yes, but what about Draco? Or Severus?" McGonagall sighed as she tried to calm down.

The headmaster closed his eyes, tightening Harry's hand – as if all wasn't enough, he'll have to deal with that too "Don't tell anyone anything… we don't have to make any explanations about them at the moment."

"But… Albus…" McGonagall stared at him sternly, as she wondered whether she had heard him correctly. "You're not… protecting Severus this time, are you?"

"Right now, I'm not discussing this Minerva."

"You're not discussing this?" she repeated "For what you have said, it seems to me that if it wasn't for Potter, Hogwarts would not have a headmaster right now! And you are not going to discuss this?"

Silence fell between them.

"If Scrimgeour wants to know about those matters, he'll have to make an appointment with me. That will at least give us time."

"TIME?"

Again, they fell into silence.

Seeing that there was no point in arguing about this, Minerva finally spoke. "It'll be as you wish Albus," she laid a hand on one of his shoulders. "Please…rest, it was a tough day, and yet we haven't finished with the explanations." With that she turned and left the Hospital Wing.

'_Explanations_,' The old man smiled sadly as he brushed some hair off of the Harry's face – he would give everything to see the boy waking up and asking him for some explanations… at least blaming, or shouting at him as he had once done.

»«

Dumbledore slowly opened his eyes, he hadn't meant to fall asleep but at certain point of the night, tiredness had overtaken him. Although he had had his rest, he still felt a little dizzy, due the effects of the cave's potion. He sighed as he looked towards the bed next to him, and paled at once.

"Harry?"

**To be continued.**

»»»«««

**Written:** January 24, 2006

**Edited: **December 6, 2010

_Thanks to my beta-reader:_**Emeralds and Rubies**

And thanks for all your reviews:

**insanechildfanfic, LianZodiac, shannyauburn, Baldur, Sailor Hecate, Ash, Ginny, light, yup, thewaytoheavan, Never Odd Or eveN, Silver Moonlight, Jeffnergirl.**

»»»«««


	3. Confrontations

**Disclaimer:** Not mine.

**Fears and Hopes**

**CHAPTER III – Confrontations**

Dumbledore slowly opened his eyes. He hadn't meant to fall asleep but at some point exhaustion had overtaken him. Although he had had his rest, he still felt a little dizzy due to the effects of the cave's potion. He sighed as he looked towards the bed next to him.

He paled at once…

"Harry."

His heart leapt as he realized that the bed was in fact now empty, the only sign showing that Harry had been there were his glasses that were upon the night table. Noticing that Poppy wasn't there either, Dumbledore got to his feet and hurried out of the infirmary. All the hallways were empty, which indicated that all the students had been already taken to the Hogwarts Express.

The headmaster leaned against one of the walls of the castle; it was pretty obvious that whoever had taken Harry had taken advantage of the student's departure, the castle was nearly empty with the exception of some professors, a convenient situation for someone wanting to pass unnoticed; Dumbledore sighed angrily, if only he hadn't allowed his guard down. Suddenly a voice echoed through the castle, interrupting his thoughts.

"You can't take the boy!"

The Headmaster held his breath as he recognized Poppy's voice, he hurried down the stairs and reached the entrance hall to find Minerva and Madam Pomfrey stood in front of the school's doors confronting Rufus Scrimgeour and some of his aurors, one of whom was carrying Harry over one of his shoulders.

"You fool!" Minerva yelled angrily, "He'll die if you–"

"Indeed he will if I leave him here!" Scrimgeour pointed to Harry with his hand, "So, this is your idea of 'we've got everything under control'? Three injured, one missing teacher and the Chosen One – our only hope against You-Know-Who – in some state of coma!" he smiled sarcastically as he continued, "No my dear woman, I'm taking Harry with me, whether you like it or not."

"As I see, my words weren't clear enough for you."

The smile in the Minister's face faded as he recognized the voice. He turned to find the headmaster walking towards them; his eyes were cold as ever.

"Of course they weren't!" McGonagall's cheeks were starting to paint with blotches of color, "His aurors just burst into the infirmary and–!"

"And took Mr. Potter right under your own nose," Scrimgeour cut McGonagall off before she could say another word. "I'm afraid, Dumbledore, that this just shows how obvious it is that you are not in any shape for taking care of a child."

"How dare you!" Madam Pomfrey stared hardly at the Minister.

"My capacities are not something on which you've been called to discuss Rufus," Albus continued. "So, I must insist that you return Harry to the Hospital Wing immediately."

Trying to ignore the warning, Scrimgeour reassured himself by counting the aurors that were escorting him. "As I said before, he's not staying here," without another word he turned and started walking towards the doors, but stopped when he saw McGonagall and Poppy were plunging their hands into their robes.

By the time the Minerva and Poppy reached their wands, the aurors already had theirs trained on the small group of professors.

"You are not serious!"

"I'm afraid we are Rufus," Answered the headmaster, his voice still calm.

The Minister of Magic turned towards him to find that his wand was also raised, "I shouldn't have been surprised at all! Umbridge warned me about you… and your deputy," He looked from Dumbledore to Minerva, and sighed with some kind of resignation. "But I'm sure you don't intend to take on ten aurors at the same time," He glared at the auror carrying Harry, "Do you?"

Dumbledore tightened his fists as he quickly pondered all the possibilities; the situation wasn't nearly as easy as the incident in his office had been. He also knew he was weak, and yet there was much more at risk this time. He didn't care about himself, but he knew that he could not risk some flying curse hitting Harry. Minerva had had enough the last year with the stunner spells, and Poppy was not as gifted dueling as she was in healing. Finally, after some seconds he lowered his wand.

Scrimgeour's face lightened with a triumphant smile, "So… finally you are reasonable Dumbledore." He turned towards the Deputy Headmistress who was still in his way, "Will you excuse us?"

McGonagall stared at him fiercely as she tightened her grip on her wand.

"Minerva, please."

McGonagall turned her gaze towards Albus and after a second of hesitation she stepped aside. Scrimgeour didn't waste a minute and was gone from the castle in matter of seconds.

Before either of the two women could even think of asking him something, Dumbledore walked towards them.

"Poppy, warn the rest of the Order, we don't have much time." He turned towards his deputy, "Minerva could you…" But before he could even finish, a tabby was already running after the group that had just left. Dumbledore sighed with resignation, "And do not forget about the stiff thing."

»»»«««

"Take him to the library," Ordered Scrimgeour as he pointed to a room that was a few doors down from where they were standing in his house.

The auror carrying Harry looked at him hesitantly, "Sir, I think…" Before he could finish his sentence, the Minister of Magic turned his gaze towards Percy Weasley who was walking down the stairs of the house.

"The reporters are here?"

The redheaded nodded slightly, "Yes in your office, in fact they're expecting us…" He gazed at Harry, "…and him."

Taking his chance, the auror spoke again, "Sir I think a bedroom should be best for this boy…"

"He can rest later, now take him there and wake him."

"You want to wake him?" Repeated Percy incredulously. "As soon as he wakes up he will return to Dumbledore!"

"He won't. Don't look me like that, boy, I already knew that!"

"Yeah and who will stop him?"

"An order," Answered Scrimgeour taking a long roll of parchment out of his cloak. "Due to the recent events at Hogwarts and from now on the Ministry will take the custody of this boy," he read.

"A custody that will end in matter of weeks when Potter comes of age," Percy argued.

"Sir," Insisted the same auror again as he cleared his throat.

"We need more time," Added Percy, completely ignoring the auror.

"But, sir!" The auror spoke again.

Rufus finally turned towards him, "I told you to take him to the library!" He pointed one of his fingers at the face of the young auror. "I don't care what you have to do, but I want him awake within the hour! Whether you paste his eyelids or…" He became silent as his face lightened with a machiavelic smile, "You know, thinking it better…" He pointed his wand at Harry; "I'll take it from here." With a wave of his wand the Minister levitated Harry, then he started to walk towards the library.

»»»«««

Severus Snape looked over the Death Eaters as they attacked the magical wards of the Minister's manor; it would only be a matter of seconds before they could enter to the back of the house. The Dark Lord wanted to show to the Magical World more proof of his growing power, and after Hogwarts, the next target was the Minister.

Looking around, he noticed the presence of one particular cat. The tabby was sitting stiffly over the branch of a tree near to the manor, and staring sternly at one of the large windows of the house.

Feeling his eyes on her, the cat jumped onto the floor and without thinking twice it turned it's gaze towards the potion's master. Both stared at each other for several seconds.

"It's done!" Shouted one of the Death Eaters, announcing that the magical wards had faded at last.

Snape returned his attention to the feline just in time to see its eyes growing with anger, in a matter of seconds the tabby jumped toward Severus. Knowing the cat would do more than attack him, he pointed at it with his wand. "Desmaio-"

"Stupefy!"

A jet of red light surrounded the tabby, stopping it in the middle of the air, and sending it right onto the floor.

"Are you coming or not?" Asked Bellatrix Lestrange as she lazily lowered her wand. "As if we had time to play with such things!" She turned and reached the rest of the Death Eaters who had already entered to the house.

Gazing one last time at the tabby stunned in the floor, Snape followed Bellatrix. As soon as he walked through the doors he was able to hear Amycus´s voice.

"This is ridiculous! We should be in the Ministry! Not here!"

"Actually Amycus, we're here because the Minister's here!" Replied one of the Death Eaters. "It's seems most of his aurors are with him in his office," He pointed to the stairs that lead onto the first floor. "They are having some kind of press conference…"

"Yeah, a press conference in the Minister's home!" Interrupted Amycus again.

"They just came from Hogwarts, you idiot!" Replied Bella before turning towards Snape and smiling evilly. "Maybe they have some pitiful announcements to make, right Sev?"

Before Snape could say something at all, Amycus spoke again, "Or maybe they are just trying to get our attention away from the Ministry!"

"The Dark Lord wanted us here! If you have any problems with that you can always send your complaints to him." The voice of the first Death Eater drowned out Amycus, "If not, let us do what we've come to do."

Bellatrix gazed Snape one last time, "Don't get yourself trapped. Dumbledore won't be as kind as he was with you before."

Once all the Death Eaters were heading towards the stairs, Snape fixed his gaze on the doors of the room where the tabby had been looking.

"Severus!" called Bellatrix impatiently, "Are you coming or what?"

Snape smiled sardonically, "Go ahead Bellatrix, I do not need a baby sitter to help me secure the first floor."

»«

Harry slowly opened his eyes. Every inch of his body was aching, and he felt extremely dizzy even though he was lying down. Thinking it would get better if he moved, he put his best efforts into trying to stand up. He hadn't even taken two steps when his knees buckled under his weight, sending him right onto the floor.

Before he could even think of trying to get onto his feet again, someone picked him up. Looking up and doing his best efforts to focus his eyes, he found the unmistakable face of Severus Snape staring at him.

"Potter."

**To be continued.**

»»»«««

**Written: **January 13, 2006

**Edited: **December 7, 2010

_Thanks to my wonderful beta-reader:_** Emeralds and Rubies**

And thanx for all your reviews:

**DuShuZhi, Thalia **(yip he's still alive), **Dragonero **(Snape, Snape… what I'm going to do about Snape?)**, Freddie, Sailor Hecate **(sorry for the cliff… again)**, Silver Moonlight **(yeah another cliff my sis)**, Ginny, light, shannyauburn, Lianzodiac, AngelMoon Girl, Not A Muggle.**

»»»«««


	4. Hope

**Disclaimer:** Yeah… not mine!

**Fears and Hopes**

**CHAPTER IV – Hope**

"Potter."

Snape stared at the intense green eyes that were looking back at him with an indescribable hatred and anger; the boy tensed as he tried to push him away. For a few seconds he seemed to be ready to put up a real fight, but suddenly, as fast as it had come, his strength left him again.

"_You… coward… trai… tor."_

Severus smiled coldly, "At least some things don't change." He looked down at him as he realized the boy was fainting again. "Don't you dare–," Before he could say another word, he was interrupted.

"Morsmordre!"

He turned towards the windows just in time to see a jet of green light rising to the sky, and moments later the place was lit with the blazing Dark Mark. He returned his gaze to the now unconscious boy lying in his arms. "Very typical of you…Potter," As he carried the boy over one of his shoulders, his eyes stopped on one of the nearest tables, there, opened halfway, was an ancient looking book with some kind of metal cover; before he could look at it closely, various popping sounds coming from the outside caught his attention.

»«

"It seems somebody arrived just before us," muttered Remus as he pointed to the Dark Mark floating in the sky.

"Death Eaters," Alastor Moody turned immediately towards Dumbledore. "Do you think they have come for the bo–?" Before he could finish, the elder wizard answered his question.

"No," Albus sighed while he tried to reassure himself that it really was that way. It was impossible at this point for the Death Eaters to already know Harry had survived. "They came looking for Scrimgeour," he added, centering his attention on the manor. "Alastor, Remus, and Tonks, you will secure the second floor while…" he paused, suddenly becoming silent.

The rest of the order exchanged confused glances as Dumbledore started to act like he was trying to hear something that no one else could hear.

"Albus, is everything all right?" asked Molly Weasley while she looked from her husband and Tonks to the elder wizard.

Albus sighed with resignation as he fixed his glance to the back of the house, "It seems our D.A. reinforcements are already here."

»«

"Ennerv-"

Before Hermione could cast the spell on the tabby cat lying in her arms, Ron seized her wand arm. "You're not serious?" he asked with incredulity.

"Of course I am!" the brown-haired girl replied. "If you haven't noticed, this cat is McGonagall!"

"Yeah, of course I did! But–,"

"And it's not like she was taking a nap in the middle of the sidewalk when she was supposed to watch over Harry," she insisted.

"Yeah, I also know that! BUT, I really don't think you have to wake her right now!"

Luna Lovegood agreed, "She'll kill us."

"And we still have to save Harry," added Ginny as she pointed to the manor in front of them.

"Then someone will have to stay with her."

In that moment, all of their gazes turned immediately towards Neville.

The boy opened his mouth in sudden confusion but when he tried to speak, another voice drowned out his own.

"RONALD AND GINEVRA WEASLEY! What the bloody hell are you doing here?"

The D.A. turned around to find the Order of the Phoenix standing just in front of them with angry looks in their faces.

Ron could feel in that moment how the blood flooded to his cheeks, "We-we-we…"

Ginny took a deep breath, "We've come to help."

Molly looked at them again in disbelief, "HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND?"

Before Ron could find the best words to answer the question, Albus noticed the tabby lying in Hermione's arms.

"Minerva!"

"We just found her," explained Hermione as the elder wizard took the tabby from her arms. "She's alive but stunned."

"Very lucky for her," said Moody, his magical eye looking around, searching for any sign of danger. "She should be dead by now."

Tonks gazed at him angrily, "Alastor! You could be more sensitive! This is Minerva you are talking about."

"I'm just telling the truth. If she tried to confront 'them'…"

"Minerva never would do something like that," Dumbledore cut him off. "They found her… but I don't think they recognized her."

"Will she be all right, Professor?" asked the red-haired girl.

"I hope so," he answered as he gave the tabby back to Hermione. "Please, take care of her Mrs. Granger."

"But Professor…"

Without another word Dumbledore called Fawkes. As the phoenix appeared just above them, he looked at the D.A again. "Fawkes will take you back to Hogwarts. Once you're there, call Madam Pomfrey and STAY with her until our return."

"But…"

"No 'buts' Mrs. Granger," he turned towards the house and raised his wand. "Now let's go, we have lost enough time as it is."

»«

In matter of seconds, Severus apparated onto the second floor. The place had turned completely into a battlefield; there were a few aurors that still were trying to stop a quite superior number of death eaters. Looking around, he noticed almost immediately the worst of the battle had taken place in the Minister's office.

"YOU!" Before he could realize what was going on, Bella stormed out of the office, "YOU SAID YOU KILLED POTTER!" She added as she signaled a special point of the office.

"I…" Trying to hide his sudden confusion, he looked where she was pointing. There, in the left side of the room, there was the lifeless body of Harry Potter. "But…It's impossible," he said with a whisper.

"Well apparently it is not, you know," the woman smiled sarcastically. "I realized that when I saw him standing next to the Minister!"

Ignoring her accusing glance, Snape answered with the same sarcastic tone, "Well," he looked at her again while he returned to his usual cold face expression, "as I said before, he WAS just a very lucky spoiled brat."

"Lucky or not, you didn't kill him!" she blurted out. "You didn't kill the boy or the Headmaster!"

Severus raised his eyebrows. "Well, it seems you didn't kill the Minister either," he replied.

"That wasn't the poi–…"

"In fact," Snape raised his voice so that it drowned Bella's. "If you haven't noticed, he escaped."

"He managed to escape BECAUSE I was so damned busy trying to KILL a boy who was supposed to be dead LONG AGO!"

"That's enough, Bellatrix."

Snape and Bella turned their gazes to find Amycus standing in the threshold of the minister's office, the rest of the Death Eaters already preparing to flee.

"But…" she insisted.

"We have to go. NOW."

"WHY?"

"Maybe Bellatrix, if you weren't too worried with your Severus-is-a-traitor paranoia, he could have told us LONG AGO that Dumbledore is here."

"Dumbledore?" repeated Bella as she turned again towards Snape. She paled at once when the Ex-potions Master just nodded his head in agreement.

»«

"STUPEFY!"

Six powerful jets of red light flew through the manor's entrance towards the stairs of the house, hitting four death eaters that were coming downstairs in the process.

"Stairs: cleared," Murmured Alastor while he lowered his wand and looked around the entire place with his magic eye.

"Well, it seems the charge of Minister of Magic has its advantages," murmured Remus as he contemplated the splendid manor. "In which of the thirty rooms of this little castle should we begin to look?" He asked.

"First floor," Moody answered.

Remus fixed his glance towards the headmaster who had remained silent. "Albus?"

"Go ahead. I'll be there in a second."

As the rest of the order climbed the stairs to the first floor, Dumbledore stopped in front of the library's doors, a strange trace of magic having caught his attention. He closed his eyes for a few minutes trying to recognize the remains of the powerful but strange spell and was about to open the doors when he noticed that the entire place had become deadly silent. Realizing something was really wrong, he left the library's doors and hurried to the first floor. Just a few seconds later, he reached the hallway to find Tonks, her wand pointing at two death eaters that were unconscious on the floor.

"Hallway: cleared," she said.

"These rooms are also cleared…" added Molly as she and her husband left one of the rooms.

Dumbledore agreed. "Remus and Alastor?" he asked.

"They went to the…" Tonks turned towards the Minister's Office and was about to speak again when she saw Alastor coming out of the office with Remus leaning against one of his shoulders. He had a few cuts on his face and seemed very distressed. "Remus?" she asked. When she didn't get an answer, she persisted, "Remus, are you all right?"

"We…were too late," he whispered as Moody leaned him against one of the walls of the hallway.

Molly opened her mouth with incredulity, "What're you saying?"

Lupin took a deep breath as he fixed his glance towards the headmaster, "They…They killed Harry, Albus."

"No!" Molly covered her mouth trying to drown her sobs. She turned towards Dumbledore, but he was already running to the office.

"Albus, please…" Alastor whispered while he tried to stop the man, "…don't."

But the old wizard didn't hear.

'_It wasn't supposed to be like this…'_

In matter of seconds he was next to the young body lying on the floor of the room, he dropped to his knees as his eyes settled in Harry, trying to hold the tears Dumbledore closed his eyes as he held the child close to his chest.

»«

Alastor Moody sighed slightly as he stared at Dumbledore. Only an hour had passed since they had found the boy, and the elderly wizard had not left Harry's side. At first, he had tried with each one of the spells he knew to bring the child back, but every attempt was useless: Harry was dead.

"Albus," Moody walked closer to him, "you've done everything you could." He tried to sound as gentle as he could. "We have to go now." Knowing he had not been listened to, he insisted, "Albus the aurors are taking his body…we have to make the arrangements for the funeral."

Dumbledore remained in silence for a while. He laid Harry carefully back on the floor before standing up and saying, "They're not taking him anywhere."

"But…"

"He will be taken back to Hogwarts." The silence fell between them again until some voices coming from the hallway reached the office. Recognizing the Minister's voice, the headmaster fixed his glance toward Moody, "Alastor, make sure it's as I ask." The elder wizard turned around and hurried out of the office.

»«

Rufus Scrimgeour stared at the Death Eaters that still were stunned in the hallway, watched over by the members of the order. He looked at the aurors that were escorting him, "Take care of them."

"It seems you missed best part of the show Minister," Remus said sarcastically as he tightened his grip on his wand. "Or, I must say: you fled away."

The Minister took a deep breath. It was quite obvious he was not welcomed by the present members of the order. "You have to understand, Mr. Lupin, that there are some security protocols I must follow…I had to escape to a safer place."

"A safer place?" Arthur Weasley repeated angrily but the voice of his wife drowned him.

"You fool! You have no idea!" She cried.

"Please calm down. We couldn't have known 'they' were after the boy… we also lost some of our best aurors…" He became silent as he realized a powerful aura was coming closer to him, he turned around when he recognized it, and for the second time in one day he was scared to death.

Before somebody could do something about it, Dumbledore raised his wand, a sense of power radiated from him as though he were giving off burning heat. A single jet of white light flew from his wand and hit Scrimgeour, sending him against one of the walls and then right onto the floor.

"_Minister!"_

While Dumbledore looked down and pointed his wand to the Minister of Magic, the aurors also raised their wands.

"Albus…," whispered Scrimgeour while he tried to catch his breath. Noticing the cold fury in the man's eyes, Rufus tried to smile as best as he could, "Albus I'm…I'm really sorry… I know you really cared about…"

"You don't know anything!"

"I tried to…"

"You're always trying Rufus, but this was your last!" Finally, Dumbledore lowered his wand; "I'll do everything on my hands to see you out of the Ministry's office." Without another word he started to walk again towards the office.

"Is that a threat, Dumbledore?"

The elder wizard stopped but he didn't look at him. "No Rufus, it's just a fact," he replied.

»»»«««

Albus Dumbledore walked slowly into his office; he leaned against one of the stone walls of the castle as he looked over the school grounds through one of the windows of the circular room. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry once more had an uncertain future. Although it wouldn't be the first time, now there was a single difference: he felt old. He felt old and tired— tired of the consequences of his mistakes. Yes, he had told Harry once that with great intelligence the great mistakes came, and that was what had happened. In his belief of making the right choices, the things had gotten completely out of his hands, and that had claimed a high price: Harry's life.

As he turned towards his desk, he noticed the single vial of potion that was lying in the middle of the oak table; he closed his eyes and sighed slightly when he recognized its contents. "Severus," he called softly.

The circular office remained silent for a while, but then without warning Snape appeared just in front of the office's doors. He still was wearing the black robes of his Death Eater uniform.

"So…" Dumbledore walked calmly to his desk and sat down tiredly as he looked directly into Snape's black eyes. "You are here despite the fact that I'm the last person you want to see."

The Potion Master lowered his eyes, accepting the statement. He hadn't really wanted to see the elder wizard. He was angry at him for being capable of giving up his life as if it was just one of his lemon drops; forgetting the real reason of his presence in the castle, he pulled himself out of his own thoughts when he realized the man in front of him had remained silent, watching him while he played carelessly with the vial of potion in his hands.

Snape frowned deeply. The greatest Headmaster of Hogwarts was sitting carelessly in front of him, defenseless, as he had been in the astronomy tower. A white-hot anger licked his insides, "Your excess of trust reaches the point of absurdity!"

"I beg your pardon?" muttered the headmaster as if he was surprised that Snape had been able to speak at last.

"YOU TAKE A LOT OF THINGS FOR GRANTED!" he pointed the vial in the old wizard's hands furiously, "HOW DO YOU KNOW… how do you know that after all this… mess… I haven't changed my mind and I'm here just to k–" Before he could finish, Dumbledore opened his mouth again.

"Have you?" He asked lightly as though they were discussing about the weather.

Snape tightened his fist as he realized the headmaster was mocking him, "This is ridiculous!" he exclaimed. "YOU—!"

"You should already know your taunts does not work with me Severus." He tried to smile slightly, but, undoubtedly, the twinkle in his eyes was gone. "We already discussed this, there wasn't another way— you knew it."

Feeling very frustrated, Snape tightened his fist again, "Then I must admit I have a lot of thanks for Potter and his 'love of playing the hero'!"

The mention of that name pricked the recent wound in Dumbledore's soul. Trying to hide the sudden wateriness of his eyes, he stood up and walked towards the windows again. A few seconds passed and Snape realized that for the first time the headmaster was trying to control himself. Then suddenly he spoke.

"If that's your excuse…"

The ex-potion master exploded again, "I'M NOT EXCUSING MYSE–…"

"Then why would you hit the wrong target, Severus?" Albus cut him off, with a slight reproach in his voice.

Snape smiled with irony; finally the headmaster was blaming him for what had happened to his golden boy. Snape had to admit that given the circumstances, this attitude was better than the 'nothing has happened' one.

"It doesn't matter anymore Severus," the elder wizard sighed as he closed his eyes and buried his face in his hands.

"It matters," Snape replied. "It matters because I won't stand to have this spoiled brat chasing after me the rest of my life because of you!"

Snape waved his wand with a contemptuous gesture and seconds later some kind of stretcher appeared just in front of him. "Maybe, he'll be able to accept your 'greater good' theory," he added while he retired the invisibly cloak that was covering the body lying on the stretcher.

Dumbledore's heart leapt as the cloak fell away, "Harry." He walked around his desk and hurried to Harry's side.

Severus smiled ironically when he noticed that the eyes of the headmaster had started to twinkle a little again, "Then, I must suppose I won't have to waste my time trying to convince you that he really IS the spoiled brat."

**To be continued.**

»»»«««

**Written:** October 16, 2009

**Edited: **December 9, 2010

_Thanks to my wonderful beta-reader:_** Emeralds and Rubies**

And thanx for all your reviews:

**Silver Moonlight, Sailor Hecate, Just me **(SORRY again I'll update ASAP),** Dragonero **(thanx for your words), **Willow26, light, shannyauburn, Serendipity9, BlindDreamer2009, Digi Bonds **(I hope this chap was long enough nn), **anybody, Lianzodiac, Satan Junior No Super Hentai , Starr33, Himura-Dumbledore, AngelMoon Girl, anonymus, dumby's girl.**

»»»«««


	5. Fighting

**Disclaimer:** unfortunately… not mine!

**A/N:** I know it's been a loooong time (years? X.x), but finally after re-reading DH, and after seeing HBP, I decided to continue this story. I hope you enjoy and just a reminder: English is not my first language.

Thanks!

**Fears and Hopes**

**CHAPTER V – Fighting**

Snape waved his wand in a contemptuous gesture, seconds later some kind of stretcher appeared just in front of him. "Maybe, he'll be able to accept your 'greater good' theory," He commented while he retired the invisibly cloak that was covering the body lying in the stretcher.

Dumbledore's heart leapt as the cloak fell away. "Harry!" He walked around his desk and hurried to the boy's side.

Severus smiled wryly when he noticed that the eyes of the headmaster had started to twinkle a little bit again, "Then I must suppose I won't have to waste my time trying to convince you that he really IS the spoiled brat."

Dumbledore didn't answer; he waved one of his hands over the child while he looked him over closely. The boy didn't seem to have any visible bruises or injuries, but something indeed was wrong with him. Again, Snape's voice took the headmaster out of his thoughts.

"Headmaster..."

"This is not because of the killing curse, Severus," said Dumbledore before Snape could say anything.

"Maybe not solely, but I'm sure it has something to do with it, along with this," He explained as he showed him the book he had brought from the manor.

Dumbledore took the book in his hands, examining it carefully while he continued listening to the black haired man.

"Bellatrix Lestrange saw Potter standing next to the Minister during the press conference, but at the same time, I found another Potter in the library…"

The older wizard nodded, and after several seconds he closed the book angrily, "Ondhro Imperium," he whispered. Seeing the confused face of Severus, he explained, "What Bellatrix Lestrange saw, and therefore what she killed, was just a mere shadow of Harry."

"A shadow… of the Potter boy?" repeated Snape incredulously. "But… Why would the Minister have wanted two boys?"

"Not two… just one. One he was able to manipulate. More precisely, one he could use as he has always wanted to use Harry," Dumbledore continued as he started to pace about the room. He looked like he was desperately trying to make up his mind about something. "As I assumed, he couldn't wake Harry… and took advantage of the circumstances. They created the other Harry that we saw."

Snape looked at him with disbelief, "I think you're giving Scrimgeour too much credit. As far as I know, this is ancient magic… maybe dark magic! Those kind of spells demand great skill… and power… it's nearly impossible…"

"Difficult indeed… but not impossible, Severus." Dumbledore stopped in front of the stretcher again, he remained in silence for a couple of minutes, and then, like he had finally made a decision, he waved his wand directly at the stretcher. "There are also some people that do not understand there is some kind of magic that should not be used," he added while he walked towards his room, followed by the stretcher.

"So… what about Potter?" Snape followed the elder wizard to the room. "If that 'shadow' is 'gone', then… the boy is going to–"

"That's a possibility I'm not willing to consider."

"What are you talking about?" Snape asked abruptly. He looked on while the headmaster levitated Harry from the stretcher to the bed. "That thing was part of him… That means, part of him died with that 'shadow'… nobody can live like that."

"I wouldn't venture to say that."

"You're not serious!" Snape looked astonished. "You're not in any shape to do…"

"I'm doing this Severus," Interrupted the elder wizard sharply. He seized Harry's forearm and held it firmly, "Now, I will have to ask you to leave this room, I'm afraid the magic I'm about to use, could harm you if you stay…"

The potion's master looked at the headmaster incredulously as he started to move his wand in an intricate pattern, drawing some kind of golden bond around their arms.

"Severus…" The headmaster insisted.

Without another word, Snape turned abruptly and walked out of the room.

When the door closed behind Snape, Dumbledore tightened his grip on Harry's forearm, and the golden bond that had started to encircle both their arms now turned red. After some seconds the elder wizard closed his eyes and started to summon all his magic, focusing it around the boy.

»«

Hermione entered the Great Hall, closing the doors behind her. Her eyes traveled from the ceiling, which was as cloudy as the sky outside the castle, to the DA's members that were sitting around the room. "Dumbledore is in the castle," she said finally.

"How do you know?" Ron asked with incredulity.

"Peeves told me," Hermione sighed and sat down next to Ginny. "He saw him when Dumbledore arrived at the castle about an hour ago."

"But what about the rest of the Order?" Neville asked nervously.

"I don't think they have returned… yet, you know," Luna played distractedly with her pumpkin juice while she closed the Quibbler copy she'd been reading. "They must be delayed because of…"

"Nargles?" Ron interrupted sarcastically. "Did the nargles tell you the broomstick's highway is blocked?" He asked, Luna's apparent calm state driving him crazy.

Luna was silent for a few seconds, but then spoke dreamily, making the red haired boy chuckle, "Nargles don't do that."

"Ron, enough! Everyone here is as worried as you are!" said Hermione sharply. "You don't have to be that mean."

"Sorry ma'am…" Replied Ron almost instantly, his voice small.

Hermione sighed and continued, "Maybe Professor Dumbledore returned just to check on Professor McGonagall; maybe she'll need to be taken to St. Mungo's Hospital after all."

"But then, what about Harry?" Ginny looked at Hermione. "If they found him at the manor, don't you think the Headmaster would have returned with him?"

"Maybe he's coming with the rest of the Order. We just have to wait, as we were told," Neville said.

"Neville, it's past midnight, we've waited for, like, four hours! I can't wait any longer!" Ginny stood up, and looked at everyone. "I'm going to see the Headmaster." She walked towards the Great Hall's doors. The red-head opened them to find Alastor Moody standing in front of her.

"I hope you're thinking about going to bed, Ms. Weasley," Said Moody, while he leaned on his long staff and stared at Ginny sternly. Moments later, Molly Weasley and Nymphadora Tonks were at his side.

Ginny stared at her mom. She seemed to be all right, although she looked very sad. "Mom… are you OK?"

Molly nodded as best as she could, "We need the Great Hall darling, it will be better if all of you go to the Gryffindor Tower."

"But, Mom!" The red-head replied. "You have–."

"No buts, Ginny. It's getting late and you should be in bed. Tonks will take you there."

Looking at the stern looks on both Molly's and Moody's faces, the DA exchanged glances.

"Professor Moody…" Hermione turned towards the ex-auror, "Please, tell us: is Harry all right?"

"I think… I'll turn you all into ferrets if you–!"

"Alastor!"

After hearing Molly's voice, Moody just waved his staff, pointing it at the doors, "Off to bed with all of you!" He stopped Tonks when she turned, ready to follow them, "I'll escort them, Nymphadora. You stay here," He added, as Tonks glared at him furiously, her hair turning red.

Minutes later, a defeated D.A. was walking towards Gryffindor tower, followed by Moody.

»«

"…_Expelliarmus!…"_

…_Harry felt his body become rigid. Seconds later, he was falling against the tower wall, unable to move or speak…_

"_Severus… please…"_

…_Harry looked at Dumbledore; Snape was walking slowly towards him, the wand in his hand pointing directly at the headmaster, "No!"_

"…_Avada…"_

" _Harry… trust me…"_

" _Kevadra…"_

" _NOOOO!"…_

As he woke up, Harry jumped out of the bed, his legs instantly failing him and sending him once more right onto the floor. The boy curled up while he tried to catch his breath.

"I must admit you have a quite interesting way of waking up, Potter," muttered a familiar sarcastic voice.

Harry turned his eyes to find Severus Snape standing just beside the door of the room. The teenager didn't respond to the comment; instead, he looked around searching desperately for his wand. It seemed like he was in a room of Hogwarts' castle—but which one? He stared at the familiar carpet where he was lying. It reminded him a lot of the pattern that decorated the floor of Dumbledore's office. Just as his musings were directing his thoughts towards the obvious, he localized his wand.

"The mice ate your tongue, Mr. Potter?"

Harry turned again towards Snape, just to find him kneeling at his side; the boy tightened his fist, while his eyes filled with hate. The image of Snape pointing his wand at Dumbledore crossed his mind, and then the beast inside him finally exploded. "I'll kill you!" In matter of seconds the wand that had been lying on the night table flew to his hand. He pointed directly at Snape's face and screamed, "Stupefy!"

Severus backed off and waved his wand just in time to repel the attack. He fixed his eyes on the boy who was now leaning against one of the walls, trying to get onto his feet.

"Expelliarmus!"

Again Snape had but one second to defend himself; he stared at the teenager. "Potter, this is enough–," before he could finish, Harry turned again toward him, waving his wand furiously.

"Stupefy! Reducto! Impedimenta!" Harry sent spell after spell; at the same time the walls and the room itself started to shake. "STUPEFY! SECTUMSEMPRA! CRU–" Harry tried to leave the wall where he was leaning, but a couple of steps later, his legs buckled again under his weight. Completely out of breath, he was forced to stop the attack.

Snape was speechless; he couldn't believe the power and the speed at which every curse had been thrown. Although he'd used his best defensive skills, he'd just been able to defend himself and he'd been practically cornered against the wall in the process. His eyes settled again on Harry, when the boy somehow stood up again.

"Fight back!" shouted Harry angrily; once more the room started to shake slightly. "You coward!"

"Harry."

Harry completely froze as he recognized the voice; he turned slowly towards the bedroom's door just to find Albus Dumbledore standing there. "Stop Harry…" He whispered.

Although he was looking his headmaster straight into his deep blue eyes, Harry was shocked and out of words. After some time, the boy lost his grip on his wand, allowing it to fell silently to the floor, at the very same time the room stopped shaking.

"I thought you would be resting, Headmaster." The unusually worried voice of the potion's master broke the silence that had fallen in the room.

Dumbledore turned towards Snape and looked at him sternly, "I'm afraid I forgot I can't let both of you alone in the same room." Without waiting for an answer, the elder wizard started to walk to Harry, "Severus, could you give us a moment please?"

The potion's master merely nodded, and after a last look at Harry, he lowered his wand and then left the room.

The old wizard summoned the wand lying on the floor, and then putting one arm over Harry's shoulders, he guided him back to bed and made him sit down over the edge. "How are you feeling, Harry?" he asked looking down at him.

The teenager was not nearly ready to find his voice; his head was trying to process everything that had just happened. Moments ago he'd been filled with the same feelings of pain and loss he had felt when he had lost Sirius, but now he felt too numb to feel anything at all.

"Harry?"

Harry's eyes traveled from the hands that were resting over his shoulders to the eyes that were peering at him over the top of the half-moon spectacles. The old wizard indeed looked pale as he had ever seen him, but he was very much alive; and the look the elder wizard was giving Harry told him that he was waiting for an answer. "… " Harry blinked, and to his embarrassment his eyes burned suddenly. Feeling they were about to become rather watery, he tightened his fist with all the strength that was left in him and looked hastily down at his knees.

Understanding his silence and seeing the couple of tears that were trickling down his face, Dumbledore just held the boy tightly.

»«

Kingsley stepped again into the Great Hall, and then looked at the members of the Order of the Phoenix who had settled their eyes on him, "He's on the antechamber of the Great Hall now."

Lupin who had been looking at the Forbidden Forest through the windows, smiled sarcastically. "Great! That is very appropriate…" he turned to the rest of the Order, "Or thinking about it, why don't we use the Room of Requirement instead?"

Tonks walked towards him and seized one of his arms. "Remus," she muttered, trying to calm him down. "We took Harry's body there because of the children… we don't want them to find out until–."

"That's precisely why I don't understand! We shouldn't have brought him here."

Molly, who was sitting in one of the chairs in front of the staff table sighed tiredly and simply answered, "Albus asked us to."

Remus held Tonk's hand slightly and then fixed his eyes on Gryffindor's table, "He knows better than anyone that Harry should be buried WITH his parents…"

"Of course he knows," Moody replied. "And he also is remembering that a certain dark wizard is still out–."

"Stop it!" Molly yelled, standing up. "We don't need that right now." She looked at Lupin. "Calm down, Remus; we'll wait for Albus and then we'll decide what we're doing."

Kingsley crossed his arms over his chest, "Madam Pomfrey said he checked on Minerva when he arrived to the castle, then he went to his office. Maybe,–."

"He's been locked up there for hours!"

"Remus, really! Stop it!" This time it was Tonks who blurted out before Molly could say something; she looked straight into his eyes, "Think about what happened these past couple of days, about what happened tonight, and try to understand him! He's an old man… and right now I'm sure he needs a break. We ALL need a break."

Lupin closed his eyes, and after some seconds he whispered an apology.

Arthur, who had remained silent, stood up and came closer to his wife, "And so… I think we'll be taking it; as it seems tomorrow we'll be… well, you know."

Kingsley nodded slightly, "You all go. I'll stay here, in case the Headmaster comes. That way I'll be able to watch the antechamber also." The auror looked at Nymphadora. "Tonks can watch Gryffindor tower."

"There's no need for that… since the castle is empty we'll all be staying there," replied Molly.

"Oh no, I'm staying right here," Moody smiled slightly. "There is no way I'm leaving Shacklebolt; someone has to make sure he doesn't fall sleep."

Tonks looked at him sternly and shook her head slightly.

»«

Harry stared out the window, he fixed his eyes at the cool line of light blue that was forming along the horizon. He had been able to sleep for a couple of hours but finally all the questions in his mind had taken him out of his dreams. He had passed another hour trying to regain all his strength to get out of bed. Seeing that the castle's grounds were becoming lighter, he walked slowly out of the bedroom and into the headmaster's office. Although the hour was late, Albus Dumbledore was sitting behind his desk, writing a letter.

The boy remained silent; he looked around to make sure they were alone, and then he stared again at the elder wizard, "Professor?"

"Harry?" the headmaster answered without looking up, "It's a little early for you to be up already, don't you think?" he asked kindly.

"I couldn't sleep anymore Sir," This time Dumbledore turned his eyes to stare up at Harry. "I have… a lot of things on my mind."

The elder wizard smiled slightly, "I think that is to be expected, my boy," he closed the letter he'd been writing and gestured for Harry to sit down. "How are you feeling?"

The teenager felt some kind of déjà vu. Knowing he was more-or-less being X-rayed, Harry stared back at Dumbledore. Somehow, he knew that, depending on his answer, it would be decided whether he stayed or was sent back to bed. After some seconds he merely nodded.

Looking at the boy carefully, the headmaster was nearly able to read Harry's thoughts. He sighed and drew his wand, then conjured two cups of hot chocolate. "Drink this Harry… it will help you to go back to sleep. You still need to rest."

Harry looked at the cup apprehensively. Going back to sleep was definitely not an option when he had so many questions on his mind. "But… Sir…" he started tentatively, looking from the cup to the Headmaster, "Are you going to… explain–?"

The elder wizard nodded gently, "I will Harry; although, as you may be guessing, I'm not telling you everything right now."

Harry just nodded again. He already knew that, with Dumbledore, getting some answers was definitely better than getting none. He took the cup in his hands finally, and then he stared at the steam coming from the hot chocolate. "The attack..." he whispered as he tightened his grip on the cup.

Dumbledore took a deep breath, "Thanks to the Order and to certain students known as the 'D.A.', we were able to handle the situation."

"I asked them to…," Harry mumbled shamefacedly.

"I must say they were very brave… and also…very lucky," Dumbledore stared at Harry while he raised one of his eyebrows. "You'll be glad to hear they are all alright. We had only two injured: Neville Longbottom and Bill Weasley. Mr. Longbottom has made a full recovery and, right now, I'm expecting Madam Pomfrey to inform me about Mr. Weasley's condition."

Harry could feel guilt starting to fill his chest, but after a moment he relaxed a little. Somehow, he knew the man in front of him would not be asking him any explanations about that right now.

"After the attack," Dumbledore continued, "and with all the students going back to their homes, the Minister showed, once more, his well-known interest to examine my decisions on the running of the school. He also expressed his desire to take you out of Hogwarts and into the Ministry's custody, of course all for your own 'safety.'"

"What?" asked Harry with incredulity.

"Since you were injured… and well, like it had been shown, I wasn't able to protect the school, including you, as I was supposed to–"

"You were too weak!" Harry blurted out. "You were ill because of the potion!"

"You're very kind Harry," said Dumbledore softly while he stood up, "but the fact that the Minister was able to take you out of Hogwarts shows us he was not completely wrong." He raised his hand for silence before Harry could say something else. When the boy just closed his mouth, Dumbledore turned towards the window and stared out at the castle's grounds. "So, Rufus took you from Hogwarts to the Minister's House—but unfortunately for him, Voldemort had decided to strike again, this time at the Minister himself. Death eaters attacked the manor and somehow, during the battle –where of course you were present but unconscious– things 'happened' in such a way, that a certain Death Eater was convinced she killed you."

"But– How? Who?"

The headmaster turned towards Harry, "I'm afraid, this will be one of the things we'll be talking about later, my child." Dumbledore walked back to his chair and leaned against it. "You'll see Harry, the important fact here is: although we both know that certainly you're not dead, the Wizarding world—and Voldemort as well—believes you are."

"They believe I'm dead?" Harry repeated astonished.

Dumbledore simply nodded, "And I believe our best chances are lying on taking advantage of this confusion."

"You mean…"

"We won't clarify that you are alive."

Harry looked at him worriedly, "But then Voldemort will come here again! If he believes I'm dead, you'll be the only one standing between him and the seizure of the magical world!"

Dumbledore nodded calmly, "Certainly… although the Minis–."

"But, Sir! You can't…"

"Harry, if Voldemort wants to seize the school as he'd planned, he will take time to plan every single detail for the next move. Otherwise, he will fail again… that will give us time to act under our little cover."

Harry sighed with frustration; he wondered if Hogwarts or Dumbledore himself could stand another attack. Then, suddenly, the last word of the headmaster hit him with the full weight of what they should do. "Then… Ginny… Ron and Hermione… they also believe…" he trailed off, the mere thought of Ginny taking his breath away. How could he deceive her like that? And what about Ron or Hermione? Almost immediately, he answered his own question: it would be safer for Ginny and for everyone else to be as far away from him as it was possible.

"We are not doing this because of why you're thinking," Dumbledore interrupted him. "And I would be very thankful if you took that out of your mind. I know this will be hard for you… and them…"

"I'll do it."

The Headmaster surveyed Harry, he sighed and although he wasn't convinced at all, he nodded; there was a little silence, and then he continued, "Now, before you go back to bed, I believe we should have a little conversation regarding certain details."

Although Dumbledore didn't sound angry, Harry could felt again the same sensation he had when the headmaster had asked him about his first attempt on retrieving Slughorn's memory. An uncomfortable silence was starting to fall between them; trying to avoid it at all cost Harry muttered, "You look disappointed, Sir," he said as he looked straight into Dumbledore's eyes.

"As a matter of a fact, I am."

The answer was short, and Harry knew exactly what it was all about: he had broken the promise he had made before they left for the cave.

The headmaster remained in silence for a couple of minutes and then he spoke again, "Harry, I want you to understand–."

"I am not sorry… Sir," interrupted Harry before he could stop himself.

"Certainly, I know you are not," said the elder wizard matter-of-factly.

Harry blushed; sometimes it was really weird the way the headmaster had learned to read his thoughts as if they belonged to him. When he couldn't stand Dumbledore's intense gaze any longer, the boy stared at the headmaster's blackened, burned-looking hand and then at his own knees.

"Harry..."

"I didn't promise to sit and watch you die," said Harry stiffly before the headmaster could say something else.

They both sat for what seemed to be ages for Harry. He was wondering if he had gone too far… again. It seemed like with his silence the elder wizard was trying to corner him, but this time he wasn't allowing it. He had meant every word: he wasn't sorry. Yes, he had broken the promise… but he'd had a reason: Snape had being about to kill Dumbledore and the old man had just immobilized him, taking him out of the game. Harry tightened his fists, and again he could feel the anger starting to bubble inside of him. Why hadn't Dumbledore allowed him to fight at his side?

"Harry, listen to me…"

"You paralyzed me!" Harry finally blurted out while he stood up. " And… And… you pretended I would just stay there, watching?"

"I asked you to trust me."

"I do trust you!"

"Then–,"

"I…. I'VE JUST HAD ENOUGH!" cried Harry, "I'VE HAD ENOUGH WATCHING THOSE WHO I LOVE DIE!"

The Headmaster, who just a moment ago was about to answer, was now speechless. They stared at each other while the office remained in absolute silence again. Harry could see the expression in Dumbledore's eyes had changed completely, his eyes now looked rather watery. Harry breathed deeply in an effort to steady himself, but it didn't work. He closed his eyes, his head was pounding badly and he was starting to feel sick. He leaned against one of the chairs.

"Harry…"

"You were the target after all…" the boy tried to continue but it was useless. When his knees were about to yield under his weight, he felt a strong hand stopping him from slipping down to the floor.

"Snape..."

"Professor Snape," Dumbledore corrected the boy gently while he put his free hand on Harry's forehead. "You must calm down, Harry. I'm afraid I'll have to leave our conversation until I believe you are capable to speak without passing out."

Harry stared weakly at the Headmaster once more. Although his voice had been steady, a couple of tears were sparkling in his eyes. Seeing the concerned frown on the elder wizard, he knew he couldn't argue anymore with the man.

Pulling him upright, Dumbledore watched as the boy fought to keep his eyes open, "Let go Harry… you need to rest."

"n't go…"

"I won't Harry."

**To be continued**

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**Written:** March 22, 2009

**Edited: **December 10, 2010

_Thanks to my wonderful beta-reader:_** Emeralds and Rubies**

And thanx for all your reviews.


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